The PACWolves III: Geyser of Fire
by Roy Olsen
Summary: Act III of the PACWolf trilogy. The War for the Southern Frontier has begun! As the forces of the Republic and the Empire are lost in epic rage, a pair of tired old soldiers struggle to save the planet Zi from the most powerful Zoid weapon ever created
1. Chapter 1

**Prologue**

Never underestimate the challenges of life. Just when you feel you've fallen to the most painfully difficult level imaginable, the guiding forces in the universe may push you just a little bit further down the stairwell. Is it a test of your strength, of your faith, or just some sort of punishment for the way you have lived? For me, it was probably a little bit of each.

My friends and I, Jeremy Kelt, are self-christened "the Castaways of the Republic," a title that should perhaps now be expanded to include the Empire. It is a twisted tale.

Years ago, Colonel Sared of the Helic Republic attempted to use us as pawns in a scheme to raise himself to the level of a glorious hero. He gave us indestructible Zoids called "Plasma-Armored-Command-Wolves," or "PAC-Wolves" for short, then tried to have an assassin kill us. When we blew open his plans and ruined his career, he used the last of his authoritative powers to banish us all from the Helic Republic. We hid in poverty in the Guylos Empire for over two years, trying to scrape together a life as bounty hunters.

Sared's trump card against us was his daughter Katrana Sared, who betrayed us and left us open for attack by the Death Sniper, a sickeningly over-armed Gun Sniper piloted by Namor Bruticus. We barely managed to defeat him, ironically due to help from Katrana, who claimed to have seen the error in her ways.

Recently, she found us again, and gave us new PAC-Wolves. Like her father, however, she was just using us in a scheme. She had let Namor Bruticus out of prison so she could follow him and break open his criminal network, even though she knew that he would seek revenge on me. To gain his trust, she gave him access to a Zoid called "The Stone Dragon." Apparently it, too, was constructed out of Plasma Armor, and in the ensuing battle, Bruticus painfully wounded my friends Kellar Sifen and Harley Mansod. My best friend Kavid Deen is now missing, and since his Zoid was violently destroyed, I can only assume the worst.

Still claiming friendship to us, Katrana and our new ally Zaun Skyler, the Blade Liger Vampire, helped me defeat the Stone Dragon, but—damn my luck in life—I was betrayed by Skyler, and he and Bruticus escaped after Katrana was wounded.

My only unharmed friend is Kavid's old buddy from Engineering, Bruno Saltus, who has helped me in rescuing my wounded friends and load them onto his silver Gustav.

We are doubtful about our chances for survival out here in the deserts of the Southern Frontier. We are "Castaways of the Republic," and have now lost acceptance in the Empire, due to the fact that we threatened the life of Major Erem Nevets. For the past year, he was a corrupt Imperial Officer that allowed us to live in the town of Klaylos—as long as we paid a "rent." But that rent turned into blackmail, and when Katrana gave us the new PAC-Wolves, we turned on the major, humiliating him in his defeat. There is no doubt that his mind is focused on vengeance…especially towards me.

The Guylos Empire has been building up a considerable force in the Frontier for some time, and just hours ago, Bruno and I were witness to a massive air-invasion by the Helic Republic. The South is a wasteland, with very few resources and far more challenges than rewards, but it is land, nevertheless. To ancient rivals such as the Republic and the Empire, that is the only incentive necessary to start a war.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter One**

**Loss of Vision**

Let's just say that I wished this 127-ton robot wasn't so quiet.

Twin crescent moons scraped the night sky as swirling winds spewed sand over the carcass of a fallen Berserk Fuhrer. Dirt and rock slowly filled the gaping hole burnt through the body of this mighty Zoid—a hole ironically created by a Charged Particle Beam.

"Hand me the torch."

Bruno's arm shook as it stretched out to give me the cutting torch. The wind was picking up, and the sand pelted us with such intensity that we could feel it through our stolen Imperial Officer uniforms. Thankfully, Bruno had found some goggles in the supply case that he stored in his shining, silvery Gustav. At least our eyes were safe.

Our hands and feet ached from the frequent falls to the desert ground. The armor plate of a Berserk Fuhrer was very flat and smooth, and wind gusts had knocked us off too many times to remember. Sitting atop the head of a Fuhrer during the latter half of a sandstorm was no easy feat.

But we had to cut open the cockpit. If there was only a chance that--.

"Got it!" The severed clamp limply swung down and banged against the Zoid's impressively thick armor plating. Feeling a moment of success made me lose my concentration, and I started to slide off of the tilted head. In a panic, I grabbed onto the side of the forehead, and dropped the torch. I was too tired to curse.

"Okay, Bruno, I'll pull you up and we'll install the jack together." Bruno nodded and swung up his large arm. I suddenly regretted the idea of pulling him up. The struggle to get his big body up behind the Fuhrer's cockpit hatch was nearly back-breaking, but thanks to his great strength, we managed to pull it off.

"Bruno," I said, gulping sandy air, "you need to lose some weight."

"What? No youse just needs to gains a little mussles." He slapped me on the back, which set off a frightening "crack" sound. Much to my surprise, it made me feel a little better. For a little while.

Working with Zoids was Bruno's specialty, and despite my offers of assistance, he took over installing the jack and cranking open the hatch. Bruno had the hatch open about half-a-meter when, as if on cue, a heavy gust of wind swooped into the cockpit and lifted the hatch up just a couple of centimeters. The miniscule movement was enough to disconnect the jack and send everything tumbling down.

Using lighting reflexes, Bruno wedged the hack into the side of the hatch, managing to keep the heavy composite steel plate open by perhaps twenty centimeters.

"Damn!" I cursed. "We can barely see in there now, much less get in."

Bruno's eyes became very stern and focused. "How much time do you need?"

"What?" I was confused.

"To get in and out! How much time?" I started to understand, but was nervous.

"Uh…about thirty seconds?"

Bruno began stretching. "Then youse have thirty seconds." He roared and squatted, grabbed underneath the edge of the hatch and then, roaring even louder, lifted it up another meter-and-a-half! "Go!"

"Uh…right!" I pulled out my knife and crawled in quickly. After a couple of meters I found what I was looking for.

"Katrana!"

She was unconscious, and I could feel blood on her, but in the faint light I couldn't make out her condition.

Was that a puff of breath?

Using the knife I cut her straps and rather bluntly began shoving her backwards up out the back of the cockpit. If I had more time I would have been more gentle.

Once Katrana had cleared Bruno's feet I scrambled out, practically diving as my friend dropped the hatch shut. Turning around I saw Bruno nursing his quivering hands, and wiping sweat from his hairless brow.

"Thank you, my friend. I owe you one."

"You took forty-five."

"Huh?"

"Forty-five…seconds."

I smiled. "Okay then, I owe you two."

"No!" I sat up, panting and sweating. Bruno woke up and crawled over to me.

"Did youse have a bad dream, Cap'n Kelt?" he asked.

I looked at where I was, trying to regain my wits. A cave. I was in a cave. Bruno's Gustav was parked in front of the entrance with its holo-projector on. Thanks to Katrana's little upgrade, Bruno's Gustav had holographic abilities now. Anyone looking at our little hole-in-the-wall from the other side would see solid rock.

But that was the good news.

Laying along the back wall of our little fort were three bodies: Sifen, Mansod and Katrana. They were all motionless, scarred and bloody. They needed medical help, but we had nowhere to take them. Still, I would have given anything to have seen a fourth body among them: that of my closest friend, Kavid.

Was he dead? Had he escaped? I didn't know. His Command Wolf, PAC-2 was crushed and burnt to a crisp out on the Sea of Dunes, but his body was nowhere to be found.

I whipped off my blanked and stood up—there was no way I was going to sleep for a while, now. Bruno wanted to say something, but he know the answer already.

I walked over to my injured friends and studied them for the fiftieth time today. Sifen had the calmest face, but the most bruises. He should thank his luck that only his pinky was broken. He always broke that pinky.

Mansod was already half-machine. His cybernetic parts were still holding together, but the rest of him was a mess. He'd probably need more parts.

Katrana wasn't broken, but she had burns spread about her body. Her nearly perfect appearance now looked a lot more…realistic. There was so much I wanted to ask her. So much I _needed_ to ask her. Despite all that she had done to us, I still hoped that she was our friend. I couldn't take another enemy…

I had to get out.

"Bruno, I'm going out with PAC-1."

It was a strange feeling trotting PAC-1 towards a rock wall; I had to keep reminding myself it was just a hologram. I could even feel some anguish in PAC-1's footsteps.

"Don't worry, buddy, it's okay."

My Zoid and I seemed to morph out of the cave wall and run into the rock canyon in search of peace.

We would not find it.

Plasma-Armored-Command-Wolf-1 was a bit shot up. True, it was constructed out of indestructible metal, but it was actually normal metal that was "plasma-charged" so that it would be unable to break apart from itself. Somehow, though, the weapons carried by the Stone Dragon were strong enough to dent, even sever the bonds of the PAC-wolves armor. Ironically, the Dragon's basic frame seemed to be constructed out of Plasma Armor itself.

Charged Particle Guns had some effect against the armor, but not much. Only the Dragon had shown more destructive power. But how?

PAC-1 ran out of the canyon and onto the Sea of Dunes towards the Imperial Southern Scientific Outpost. It was a deceptively titled structure upheld by the Guylos Empire. The building was stock full of Zoid parts, ideal for repairs and upgrades. It had been used as a launch site for the Stone Dragon and could easily be changed into a Southern Frontier battle station, since that is basically what is was.

Like today.

As I cleared a large dune, something to the east caught my eye. As I drew closer, the sight was quite obvious: there were two giant Republic Whale Kings, laying on the desert sands near the ISSO base. I knew there could only be one reason why.

A little farther to the south, my fears were confirmed.

The night sky lit with the fiery red flares of missile exhaust that screamed over the sandy graveyard. A row of three Iron Kongs erupted in blood-red fireballs as the projectiles penetrated their massive chests.

In retaliation, three Energy Ligers stampeded through a unit of Gun Snipers and rammed their horns into the heads of the Liger Panzers that fired the missiles at the Kongs. Once the Energy Liger horns had charged up, they were snapped, and the Panzers began exploding.

High above, multiple squads of Raynos' and Zabats swarmed the sky, filling the battlefield with crashing Zoids. Two Zabats were blown to pieces by a pair of Raynos'; their parts fell from the sky into a group of three Command Wolves, destroying the unsuspecting canine Zoids.

The war for the Southern Frontier had begun.

"You know something, PAC-1? I have a feeling we shouldn't be here." I told my Zoid.

As my Command Wolf backed up, it suddenly started rattling from rapid fire. Looking to my left, I could see the spinning source of fire, and two glowing green eyes: A Dark Horn.

Acting on instinct, I swung PAC-1 around and aimed its 150mm cannon at the Dark Horn's left leg. Despite the Gattling Unit's heavy fire, I knew I was safe in PAC-1. I opened fire at the Horn's knee.

It took three shots to break the attacking Zoid's joint and crash the styracasaurus to the desert ground. They sure couldn't stand up very well.

My comm began beeping. Someone in the Republic forces was hailing me. Despite my better instinct, I answered.

An image of a Republic officer popped up on PAC-1's Heads-Up-Display after I pressed the "Comm" button. I couldn't tell what type of Zoid he was piloting, but it looked big.

"What the--? You're an Imperial officer!" Oh yeah! My clothes! I had forgotten about my disguise I had used to get into ISSO.

"Relax, officer. It's not what you think. I'm a former captain from Mt. Hoploy on an espionage mission. I did not mean to take part in your battle. I would like to leave in peace now, if I can."

The officer looked at me doubtfully, but with a reasonable eye. "My name is Lieutenant Stofen Bianlat. I pilot a Gordos that is bombarding this area. Right now my sights are on you."

I frowned. "Please, sir. I've had enough fighting for now!"

Lt. Bianlat analyzed my words. "Can I assume, then, that you are the one responsible for destroying the Berserk Fuhrer we found out here?"

I sighed. "Look at me, sir. I'm in a Command Wolf! I fought in that battle, but I didn't kill the Fuhrer."

"Than who did?"

"That would take too long to explain." Why should he care, anyways? This guy was either stalling for time, or pissing me off. Definitely the latter.

Then, things went from bad to worse. A trio of Redlers dive-bombed us, blowing open the side of the Gordos with their Hybrid cannons. Naturally, PAC-1 was unharmed.

"You…you're in a PAC-Wolf!" deduced Bianlat. How he knew about PAC-Wolves was a bit disturbing, but I didn't have time to worry about it.

"And you've got a battle to pay attention to, lieutenant. The tide is turning." Since the goring of the Liger Panzers, the Republic could no longer hold back the Empire's Energy Ligers and Lightning Saix'. The Command Wolf units were completely wiped out, and the Redlers had taken care of the Raynos squad in the sky. All the Republic had left was a few Cannon Tortoises and Gordos', and they wouldn't last much longer. The Empire still had plenty of Canoneer Molgas and even a couple of Hel Digunners.

"If that really is a PAC-Wolf you're driving, you're obliged to help us!" ordered Bianlat.

"I'm…I'm sorry, lieutenant, but I've got my own problems."

"Coward!" he screamed; his words pierced through me.

"What did you dare to call me?" I growled back, fighting back the memories of the last week.

"I say you are a coward! You pilot one of the most powerful Zoids that ever existed, yet you'll only sit and watch your brethren get massacred by your sworn enemy!"

"These men are not my brothers, nor do they fight any 'sworn enemy' of mine!" I barked back. "Your passion for the melodramatic is sickening, Lieutenant Bianlat! I am never going to risk myself for anyone's sake ever again!"

With those words, PAC-1 froze solid. It wouldn't move. It's controls seemed broken.

"What are you doing, PAC-1? Those Redlers are circling around for another attack! We have to get out of here while we still can!"

My Zoid began rattling as the Redler's Hybrid Cannons gave it a good pounding, but it was solid as a statue.

"Damn you, you stupid Zoid! Go!" I screamed.

Suddenly, PAC-1's cockpit hatch swung open, and as I watched the Redlers fly off into the sky, I was ejected!

As I crashed down onto the gritty sand floor, I was too angry to think straight. "What the hell are you doing?" I roared back at my traitorous companion.

PAC-1 closed its cockpit hatch, took a step back, spun around and raced off toward the battlefield.

It all suddenly made sense. PAC-Wolf-1 felt an obligation to fight, a sense of duty that I had somehow lost.

"Come back here! Don't leave me!" I cried as I ran across the dunes.

I stood crouched on my hands and knees, unable to cry anymore, thanks to my dehydration. As a Molga drove up beside me, I watched little grains of sand vibrate over the backs of my hands. It's hatch opened and the pilot called out to me.

"Captain! How did you get out of your Zoid? Quickly, sir, come with me! The Republic forces are on the run, and we've managed to save the ISSO base! We've won!"

I tried to laugh, but all I managed to do was close my eyes and collapse to the ground.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Two**

**Awakenings**

"No! Kavid!"

I sat up and nearly threw my blanket off. My cry out quickly turned into coughing. My throat hurt, but I no longer felt dehydrated. Looking down, I saw that I was covered with sweat, and obviously in a hospital-type bed.

"Bad dream?" asked a voice from across the room. I knew that voice.

"Kavid?"

He was sitting at the foot of my bed, in a slouched-over position. My scream had obviously woken him up, too. He was still in the Imperial officer's uniform that he wore when PAC-2 was destroyed by the Stone Dragon; back when I thought he was…killed.

"Yeah, it's me. You don't have to announce it to everyone, Jeremy."

"B-but…but how did you…I thought you…I couldn't find you!" I was gasping. My head was in a spin.

"Yeah, uh, sorry about that." Kavid stretched his arms and yawned. "See, I barely had enough time to hit the "Eject" button when the big "Rock Lizard" busted PAC-2 up. All I could do was crawl into the caves and hide for a few days. I…uh…got lost in the caves." Kavid gave a dopey smile. I frowned. "Well, it's the truth. It took me three days to find my way out. Once I did, what do I find, but a massive Republic versus the Empire battle raging out on the dunes. And to put salt on the wound, I see you jump into the fray. At least I thought you did. I saw PAC-1 running around zapping stuff. But he sucked at it."

I stood up, feeling a few aches and pains in my feet. "What do you mean?"

"He moved kind of slow, and his shots were sloppy, like a sleeper-Zoid. What I noticed most of all is that he was taking incredible risks, attacking Imperial big-boys and getting thrown all over the field. It didn't take me long to figure you weren't piloting him."

"Damn." I started to feel anxious. "So what happened to him?"

"He got picked up by an Iron Kong and hurled about 750 meters. Didn't see him return to the battle after that."

"How did you find me?"

Kavid snorted. "That was the real kicker. Seeing how you weren't in PAC-1, I figured I better go pick him up, so I went to the field to steal a Zoid so I could drive out and go get him. Lo-and-behold, I see a Molga parked by a destroyed Gordos, with a pilot trying to stuff an unconscious Imperial Captain into the cockpit. Turns out the pilot was saving your sorry ass."

I squinted my eyes as I tried to think back. "I…I can't remember."

"Figures. I just decked the guy, and figured I'd escape with you in the Molga. But look at you. You're a mess…again. I had to bring you here to get fixed up. It's just our saving grace that we are still wearing these Imperial uniforms."

I nodded in agreement. "You look pretty beat up yourself, buddy. Maybe you should get some help."

"Nah, I'll be all right. Just some cuts and burns. I had to make sure you were okay, first." This was just like the day at My. Hoploy, after we battled the Iron Kong that assaulted the Republic Base. Kavid didn't leave my side until I was recovered there, either.

I swore this day to never leave Kavid's side if he ever needed me.

Our next task was to escape the ISSO base, but there was a feeling inside me that said we only lucked out when we got in so easily. Getting in after a battle is easy. Getting out, after everything is re-organized—that's a lot harder.

Kavid and I walked through the bunker, trying to find our way back to the Zoids Storage Hangar. I must have been the last remaining Captain at the base, because I had never been saluted so many times before with such vigor.

Once we reached the Hangar, it was the exact opposite of how Kavid and I found it a week ago. Then, it was nearly lifeless. Now, it bristled with activity, as engineers frantically operated the equipment, attempting to repair every available Zoid before the Republic forces decided to come back.

"We need to get out of here, now, while they're busy." pushed Kavid. I quietly agreed.

"Captain! Captain!" A young enlisted man came running up to me with a panicked look upon his face.

I returned his salute. "Uh…what's the problem, soldier?"

"Sir, short range scans show a massive sandstorm heading this way!"

Kavid groaned. I struggled not to curse, but figured I better continue with my disguise. "Are there any troops still outside?"

"Yes, sir!"

"Get them all inside as quickly as possible, and lock up the bunkers." I could see Kavid start to smile.

"What about the Zoids, sir?" asked the soldier.

I growled in false frustration as an idea came to mind. "We'll have to forget about them for now, and dig them out later." The soldier looked concerned, but didn't ask anything.

"Yes, sir!" He saluted, spun around and ran off.

"You seem to handle the reins of Imperial Commander pretty well, Jeremy. Maybe you're on the wrong side?" teased Kavid.

"I don't know what side to be on anymore." I replied truthfully.

"Well, you just helped the Republic out. It'll take the Empire days to dig their Zoids all out."

"I'm just helping us escape."

Kavid put his hand on my shoulder. "Look, all joking aside, we've got to get out of here before someone with a little rank realizes we shouldn't be in here."

I frowned. "Not now, Kavid, now is not a good time."

"Kelt, now is the perfect time! No one would expect it, much less go after us!"

My jaw dropped. "You've got to be kidding me! We barely survived the last sandstorm we were in. I'm not too enthusiastic about enduring another one."

"So what do you want to do? Keep running around the ISSO base until the Republic forces come blow away a bunch of half-buried Molgas?"

Dammit, Kavid. Why was he always right?

"All right, fearless leader, lead the way."

Outside, the wind was getting intense. It was still possible to see the width of the outpost, thanks to the walls, but walking around was difficult. Most of the pilots had gone into the bunkers and hangar by the time Kavid and I walked out, but a couple of them were still outside tying down their Redlers.

"What Zoids should we take, Kavid?"

"Nothing that flies, that's for sure. Something that stays low to the ground, like maybe a Stealth Viper."

My hands wadded into fists. "I always swore to myself that I would never get into one of those stupid snakes."

"Then what do you suggest? Ow!" Kavid slapped his cheek as a lump of sand smacked him.

I scanned the Zoids still standing outside. There weren't many left, and most were Molgas, Lightning Saix' and Energy Ligers: all Zoids I didn't feel comfortable trucking out into a major sandstorm with.

Then, I saw the answer.

"A Hel Digunner!" I pointed out.

Kavid looked over and squinted, then nodded. "That's a great choice, but there's only one of them!"

I smiled. "Then it's a good thing we both took showers before we left the medical center!" I punched his shoulder and began the difficult walk towards our new ride.

Kavid just cursed.

The Hel Digunner handled remarkably well, considering two full-sized adult men were crammed into its cockpit. I sat on the left half, and Kavid sat on the right, each of us working one side's legs controls. Strong winds threatened to flip us over a few times, but we managed to work the controls well enough to cruise the big Iguana along through the blasting sand.

Our journey became a bit difficult when we reached the former battlefield, which hadn't been cleared yet. Battered and busted Zoids laid strewn across the dunes, slowly being buried by the brown sky. Maneuvering around them was quite a chore.

Suddenly, Kavid slammed on the brakes, and I slid forward into a painful position with my shins crammed against the HUD screen.

"What are you doing, Kavid?" I barked.

"Look up ahead, Jeremy!"

I managed to twist myself around enough so I could see out of the front of the windshield. My eyes just about popped out of my head.

Barely visible in the swirling mist stood PAC-1, head held high and looking back in our direction.

"Uh…two questions, Kelt."

But I already knew the questions and the answers. "I don't know why it's just standing there or what it plans to do to us. But I do know we're sitting in an Imperial Hel Digunner, and that means it doesn't like us."

The 150mm cannon on PAC-1's back began to glow red, and the Command Wolf roared with determination.

"This…this is not good, Jeremy." Whined Kavid.

PAC-1 fired.

"Move!" I jerked the left control stick forward, but Kavid pulled the right stick back. Instead of evading the blast, the Hel-Digunner turned 90-degrees clockwise, making it an even wider target for the blast, and we got smacked hard.

"What are you doing?" barked Kavid.

"I'm trying to dodge PAC-1's fire!" I screamed back.

"Well you screwed up!"

"_I_ screwed up? I don't think so!" The Hel Digunner growled, and I turned my head left. "Go forward, quick!"

"What?"

It was too late. The metallic clang from PAC-1 smashing into the side of our Iguana-type Zoid rang painfully loud into my cyberphonic implants—the fake eardrums I have that don't respond well to metallic sounds.

Kavid and I screamed like school children as our Zoid tumbled through the sandstorm, shuffling our bodies like dice. We ended up thirty meters away, upside down on the Hel Digunner's back cannon, twisting in the wind.

"Well this is just great! Ow!" griped Kavid as I "accidentally" kicked him.

We were all tangled about each other now in painful positions. Piloting a Zoid while laying on my stomach looking down at the HUD, flipped 180-degrees around was quite impossible. Kavid's head was stuck against the foot controls.

"We've got to get out of this thing." I said, rather obviously.

"You think we'll survive in that sandstorm?" asked Kavid as he pulled his head off of the foot controls.

"We won't survive in this Hel Digunner if PAC-1 keeps attacking it."

Kavid groaned. "Okay, pop the hatch."

I painfully reached back with my arm, searched for the lever and pushed it (If we would have been right-side up, I would have pulled the lever, mind you). The HUD cleared off and the hatch opened, letting in a swarm of dust and heat. I slid off of the hatch face first and crashed to the desert floor. Kavid slid right behind me, but managed to grab onto the cockpit edge, and drop himself down smoothly.

"I can't see anything but dirt!" yelled Kavid as he stumbled through the wind.

"We have to find PAC-1!" I called back.

"Why do you want to find it?" inquired my confused friend.

"I have an idea!"

Out of the waves of sand, two flashes of red flew across the sky, and tore into the body of the Hel Digunner. Our topsy-turvy transport exploded in a fiery burst, but thanks to the strong wind, the explosion was quickly deflected, saving us from harm.

Still, Kavid and I jumped to the ground, and when I next looked up, a ruby-red, black and silver mass emerged from the cloud of sand.

I jumped to my feet and raised my hands. "PAC-1! Stop! It's me, Captain Kelt!" The Command Wolf took a couple of steps back, as if it was shocked to see me. "Please, no more! I'm your friend!" I prayed that my former Zoid could understand my pleas.

PAC-1 hung its head low, and crouched down, letting out a soft growl. Was it sad?

"Look, PAC-1, I'm not sure why you did what you did, but you probably thought you were doing the right thing, and looking back at everything, I guess I kind of deserved it." PAC-1 growled. My eyes watered a little. " But buddy, we are a team, and we need to stick together. We can't split up like that, or we're gonna get hurt, just like now. The whole big Zoid battle could have turned out a whole lot different if we would have stayed together."

Kavid walked up to me. "Uh…Jeremy, you're talking values to a Zoid."

I smiled as PAC-1's hatch opened for me. "I know, and maybe it can't understand, but I know what happened, and I think this Command Wolf does, too. Maybe someday you'll understand, too, Kavid."

My friend rolled his eyes. "Okay, well, anyways, let's get out of this storm and into the caves."

"After you."

Kavid and I had no intention of squishing ourselves into the cockpit of PAC-1, since it was even tighter than a Hel Digunner. There was no room in the cargo hold anymore, thanks to the shield unit, so against Kavid's approval, I scooped him up into PAC-1's mouth. I then trotted off towards the canyon at a brisk pace, attempting to tune out his curses and promises of death.

After about ten minutes, we reached the cave hideout, but to my concern, the Gustav was no longer there. I set Kavid down—more of a drop, actually—and ran PAC-1 to the cave entrance. There was no sign of Bruno's Zoid or either of the PAC-Wolves. More importantly, all of our friends were gone.

I jumped out of my Command Wolf and ran into the cave. Kavid followed soon after, dusting himself off.

"What's wrong, Jeremy? Where is everybody?"

"I don't know! They should be here!" I cried in panic.

"Don't throw a fit, maybe they just moved on, thinking you were captured or something."

"Maybe." But I didn't think so; I was only gone for a day. I looked around the cave, scanning for clues, and found one. "Look! That was where Sifen, Mansod and Katrana were laying, and there are blaster marks on the wall!" I started to sweat.

Kavid was standing back where the Gustav was parked. "Over here. The Gustav wasn't driven out, it was pulled out." He looked around some more. "By a Liger. Lots of Liger-type footprints around here. I'd guess Blade Liger."

I ground my teeth. There was only one Blade Liger pilot who knew that this canyon cave was to be our fallback position.

"Zaun Skyler."


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Three**

**Homeward Bound**

We knew we couldn't go back to ISSO, or the town we started from, Klaylos, since our arch-enemy Major Erem Nevets lived there, and he would kill us the moment he saw us. Still, we had to find a town or base where we could get some information on the location of Zaun Skyler, a.k.a. the Blade Liger Vampire.

Unfortunately for us, the Southern Frontier was a barren wasteland, and towns and bases were extremely few and far between. Also, due to the recent Republic and Imperial invasions, opposition could pop up anytime, anyplace.

First and foremost, however, we needed to find a Zoid for Kavid. As the sandstorm died down, we risked traveling back out to the battlefield by ISSO and looked over the damaged Zoids. Once again, Kavid rode in PAC-1's mouth, cursing profusely.

Most of the large Zoids were too heavily damaged, and the little Zoids were blown to pieces. When we reached a crashed Redler, Kavid banged on the rood of PAC-1's mouth. I dropped my friend and he ran out to the damaged Zoid dragon. I jumped to the sand and followed.

"You…uh…like this thing?" I asked

"It's perfect!" cheered Kavid.

The Redler still had both wings and Hybrid Thruster Cannons, but its head was broken off, and it was missing a front leg. Fortunately, they were laying nearby, intact.

"But…pal, it's…missing important parts."

"Open your eyes, Jeremy! They're clean cuts. With PAC-1's help, we can fix this baby by dinnertime!" That was sure a big grin.

I scratched my head, shrugged my shoulders and went to get the welding kit.

With the shield unit filling up the cargo hold (even though it no longer worked), there wasn't much room for supplies, but a welding kit was something I insisted on.

Once again making use of PAC-1's mouth, we lifted the Redler's head into the proper position and Kavid and I welded it back to the body.

After the head was finished, Kavid began work re-attaching the leg. I started soldering and hooking cables and wires from the Redler's body up to its head. There were a lot of wires missing; fortunately, there were plenty of extra parts lying around the battlefield.

It was a frantic pace, and took a lot longer than we imagined. Constructing a Zoid piece-by-piece was a lot more work than we expected. It was especially difficult in the 110-degree heat. We knew better than to keep track of time.

Right after sunset, Kavid crawled into the Redler's cockpit and closed the hatch. He activated the Zoid's Core and miraculously the HUD turned on. I sent him a comm signal as the final test, and although it was a bit pixilated, it worked.

"How's it running, Kavid?" I asked with pride.

"About as good as a busted up Imperial Zoid can run." Always the snide remark. "Looks like there are some power problems in the left leg, but it's still moveable. All weapons systems look good. Head reads about…89. Reasonable. Let's take her up."

"Waitaminit. Where are we going, first?" I nervously asked.

"I figure we've only got one choice, Jeremy."

"Uh-oh." I knew the answer.

"Nevets."

I was not looking forward to this. We had seriously humiliated Nevets the last time we saw him. I figured I would never have to deal with him again, so why not teach the squeaky bastard a little lesson?

Things looked like they might be a lot different this time, though.

An Imperial Brigade stood guard outside Klaylos, apparently watching for Republic Zoids, but no doubt having our appearance described to them as well.

There were about sixteen Zoids of various types; a few Molgas, a couple Hel Digunners, a Saber Tiger, a few Redlers, an Imperial Liger Zero, three Red Horns, a couple Helcats and the leader was no doubt that big Iron Kong. This looked hard.

I activated my comm, audio only. "CR-2, this is CR-1. Someone left a mess out front. Any ideas on how to clean it up?"

"I think we have to pick up the little pieces and ignore the big stuff. That's all we can do."

I nodded. "Roger. No need to monkey around."

Although there were a lot of powerful Zoids, the layout was sloppy. The big feline-type Zoids were clumped together with the Red Horns. The grass field by the Molgas and Helcats made an ideal attack point..

Luckily, PAC-1's cloaking device still worked, so I was able to get close to the Imperial Zoids undetected. I knew that once I was too close, though, I would be noticed. Kavid stayed far off, but was ready to blast into the battle in a matter of moments, thanks to his Redler's Hybrid Thrusters.

Unfortunately, there were very few trees in the area, so I had to try to tip-toe PAC-1 through the grass field, hoping the Redlers wouldn't take notice of my footprints.

I was concentrating on the Redlers so much that I was caught off guard when a Hel Digunner scampered across the field in front of me. In a panic, I crouched my Command Wolf to the ground, causing a puff of dust and grass to blow into the evening sky.

The Hel Digunner kept going, but a nearby Helcat took notice, and turned its head my direction. The comparatively little kitty walked my way at a cautious pace. Great. Out little infiltration plan lasted about two minutes. Subterfuge really was not our specialty. I slowly turned PAC-1's invisible 150mm cannon 70 degrees until it was aimed straight at the curious feline-type Zoid. Once the Helcat was about twenty meters away, it stopped. I placed my left finger on the "de-cloak" switch, and my right finger on the firing trigger. The Helcat flinched, jumped back and began to cloak.

Damn.

I hit the "de-cloak" switch and once the power levels had transferred from "Cloaking Device" to "Weapons System," I pulled the trigger. The thunder of the cannon blast shook my Zoid, and I watched the flash of red energy hurl itself through the air toward the Helcat's former position. Grass and earth erupted in a ball of fire, but the feline-Zoid was long gone. PAC-1 jumped up and scrambled towards the Helcat's foot trail. While in pursuit, I slammed the comm button. "Punch it, Kavid! Damn cat sniffed me out!"

By now a good deal of the Imperial Zoids had turned their heads my direction. Two Molgas were already heading towards me. The second Helcat was nowhere to be seen.

The scuffle of dust emanating from the invisible Helcat's feet across the dry grassfield was an easy path to follow. It was a trail I was all too familiar with.

And this time, the stupid little cat was only 100-meters away.

Despite the approaching danger of the Molgas, I steadied PAC-1, carefully aimed the 150mm cannon in front of the footprints, and…got blasted from behind by the second Helcat! Son-of-a--!

Moments after, the Molgas opened fire on me, shaking my Zoid to unbearable levels. Right behind the slithering Zoids, two Red Horns were charging my position, launching missiles.

I knew I had only one choice left:

"Kavid! Help!"

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a dark shape blast through the sky. Twin marks of red began flashing on top of it, and soon after, heavy blaster shots started screaming through my little battlefield of death. Rows of rapid fire began pounding across the ground, shattering Molgas and spearing through a Red Horn. Even one invisible Helcat was hit, flickering back into view as it sailed through the air and exploded.

Kavid's Redler rocketed overhead, spun around and pulled back up into the sky.

"That's four for me, Jeremy. You're getting soft. Think you can handle the rest?"

My teeth-grinding was getting painful. "You just take out the Redlers. I've got everything under control down here."

Kavid's laughing pushed me that one more step I needed to go. I was stressed, I was tired, I was mad; now, I was jealous.

The strength and focus I felt back when I fought the Stone Dragon poured through my blood once again, forming an inseperable lock between PAC-1 and my mind.

These Zoids were going down.

A Red Horn opened fire, but PAC-1 jumped clear and landed on top of the last living Molga. Using its teeth and claws, my Command Wolf tore through the outer shell of the slithery-Zoid and dug in until it exploded.

My eye caught the leap of the Saber Tiger through the smoke. PAC-1 backed up two steps, raised its cannon a few degrees and blasted the incoming Zoid straight in the face.

I was shaken as a Red Horn rammed PAC-1 from behind, sending it tumbling head-over-heels. Despite my chaotic situation, I never lost focus. As soon as my CW regained its footing, I spread its legs and slid backwards, dancing my finger across the weapons trigger. The shots didn't do much good against the Red Horn's armored head, so I altered my attack, and charged.

PAC-1 swerved around every laser shot from the Red Horn until I was close enough, then it leapt into the air, raised its front right claw…and got blasted by a Hel Digunner.

For a second time, PAC-1 rolled along the ground, this time on its side. Feelings of fear started to creep into me, but I shook them away.

Remembering Kavid's initial plan of ignoring the big Zoids, I changed my target towards the Hel Digunners and started shooting. One was quickly obliterated, but the other hid behind the Red Horn.

I guess I had to fight him after all.

Starting a new charge, I armed the 150mm cannon and blew off every weapon on the Red Horn's body. As it roared with anger, PAC-1 flanked it, raised its left claw this time, and performed a perfect Claw Strike through the styracasaurus' front left knee. The Red Horn screamed even louder, and crashed to the ground.

Claw Strikes are very difficult to do, mind you, since there is no laser energy used to strengthen them. They have to be aimed perfectly.

As PAC-1 skidded across the ground, landing from its deadly leap, I noticed that I was starting to breathe heavily. What was happening to me? Was this Zoid drawing energy from me?

Whatever it was, I was liking it.

Suddenly, a light reflection flashed my retina. I pulled back hard on the controls. PAC-1 jumped back, but the Saber Tiger's claw smashed into the Command Wolf's Plasma Armored face and shattered.

The Tiger was now brutally damaged. My earlier shot had blasted half of its face away. Now, its front right leg was clawless. Still, whomever was piloting the Zoid seemed anxious to fight me, and opened up every cannon his Zoid carried at me.

It amazes me how these guys never grasp that my Zoid is indestructible.

After about five shots to the Tiger's leg, it was taken care of. As I turned PAC-1 around, I was amazed to see Kavid engaging the few remaining Zoids. The last Red Horn was a fiery mess, and smoking Redler carcasses littered the battlefield. The Red Liger Zero suddenly exploded, spewing body-parts throughout the sky. Kavid's Redler hooked left and headed my way.

I clicked on my HUD-comm, "Pretty impressive looking work, Lieutenant Deen."

"Pay attention, Jeremy! Behind you!"

"What?" PAC-1 jerked as something grabbed its tail and pulled it into the air. As I was lifted up, I saw the feet of my attacker: and Iron Kong. PAC-1 started shaking uncontrollably, as if it was in panic.

This reminded me on what happened to Mansod on Mt. Hoploy, when that other Iron Kong ripped his Command Wolf apart. These big guys sure like the flashy kills.

Sure enough, the Kong raised my Zoid over its head and grabbed it with its other hand. Letting out a triumphant roar, it attempted to tear PAC-1 in half.

But this time it didn't work.

Sounds of metallic creaking and groaning poured from the IK's arms as it struggled, but the Plasma Armor was too strong for it to break.

"Don't move, Jeremy!" called Kavid.

I looked towards the west and saw Kavids Redler fire in at full speed. It closed its wings against its legs, turning itself into a rocket-like projectile, then began spinning. As it turned with a drilling rage, its Hybrid Cannons began pouring energy shells at the Iron Kong, pummeling the chest of the massive Zoid with energy explosions.

At first, the blasts did no harm, but like a machine, they kept their focus, weakening and weakening the Kong's armor, until it finally game way and cracked, then caved in, creating a gate into the Zoid's inner systems that were soon shriveled to death by the heavy blasts. The giant beast exploded from within and Kavid's Redler crashed on through its body and soared out the other side. As the Iron Kong fell, I twisted PAC-1 free of the Kong's exploding hands and ran after the Redler. Kavid's burning, smoking Zoid was easy to follow.

"You're out of your freaking mind, Kavid! Your Redler doesn't have Plasma Armor!" I scolded.

"Yea, I know. That's why it was so much fun!"

"Arrggh!"

"By the way, Jeremy," I could hear gloating in his voice, "I got ten, how about you?"

I attempted to change the subject. "You better land that thing, quickly, before its wings melt off.. Also, a Hel Digunner and a Helcat got away. That could be trouble. We had better find Nevets right away."

"Then that means four, Jeremy. Four for you. That seems to be substantially less than ten."

"Kavid?" I growled."

"Yes, Captain Kelt, sir?"

"Muzzle it."

Klaylos was a wasteland. Every house and building in the town was burned to the ground; absolutely incinerated to atoms, with no sign of wreckage or even ash left over. There was almost no sign it ever even existed.

"Whoa, what the heck happened here?" asked Kavid.

"I…I don't know. It would take a Charged Particle Gun a full day to do this much damage, and there would be signs if one of those was fired."

A warning light started to flash as PAC-1 walked farther into the town. "Kavid! Get down here and pick me up! PAC-1's feet are breaking down!"

"What do you mean, 'breaking down?'"

"I mean if I don't get off of the ground I won't have a Command Wolf any more! Now hurry up!"

The Redler flew down and dropped a couple of hooked cables, which quickly snagged onto my Command Wolf's back legs and lifted it off of the ground.

Kavid came up on the comm, and looked concerned, "Do you mean the Plasma Armor was coming apart?"

"Yeah. Whatever was used to destroy Klaylos has properties of a Particle Charger." I analyzed. "There was so much energy left in the area that just walking through it is deadly for Plasma-Armored Zoids."

"Damn. How are we going to find Nevets now?" asked Kavid.

I had to think about that for a moment. The town was gone. Everyone who knew Major Nevets was gone. The major was probably gone, too. It started to seem that except for Kavid and PAC-1, my whole world was disappearing around me. First it was my friends at the caves, now it was the entire town I lived in--including my arch-enemy.

I needed some sleep.

"There's nothing for us around here, Kavid. I suggest we head over to the town of Gellenos and see if we can find some answers.

Kavid sighed. "You think anybody there would know what happened thirty kilometers away?"

"Whether they do or not, it's the closest point to start from." I answered with frustration.

"Can we take a nap, first?"

For once, I was not going to tell him no.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Four**

**Birth of Fire**

Gellenos was a village far smaller than Klaylos. It was a new town, composed mostly of wood and clay buildings—nothing too permanent. Laying about twenty-five kilometers into the Veergati Desert, it was the first sign of life to come across on the journey southward into the Southern Frontier. It owed its feeble existence to the rich deposits of iron and other precious metals that laid in the hills bordering its eastern side. The Empire controlled the town, but the Republic knew of its existence, and would no doubt make a strike for this area if the War for the Southern Frontier continued.

Kavid and I parked our Zoids out of site of the town's center. We walked the rest of the way in, looking for a bar or other social area. We were bounty hunters, and had learned long ago that bars were the best place to gather information—at least in small towns.

To our surprise the streets were disturbingly vacant, and no Zoids stood guard by the mines. Either they were called to duty, or removed from duty, there was no way to be sure. A few stray people took strong notice of us, dropped whatever they were doing and ran away, most often scrambling to seek shelter in a nearby building.

"What do you suppose that's all about, Jeremy?" asked Kavid.

I looked down. "It's our clothes. We're still dressed like Imperial Officers. For some reason they must be considered a threat around here. We need a makeover."

"Or at least a shower." Joked Kavid. He pointed at a small tailor shop across the street. "Let's try that place."

"We don't have any money." I reminded him.

"I have a feeling that with these uniforms on, we don't _need_ any money."

Upon entering the shop, I felt like the most hated man in the world. Customers in the store transformed into a frowning and growling mob and started filing out the door, never taking their eyes off of us.

"They're sure angry at the Empire for something." Whispered Kavid. I just quietly looked for some appropriate civilian clothes.

I jumped as the back door banged and the store's owner stormed out. "Please, sirs, leave my store! I don't care if you beat me! You're scaring away all of my customers! You must go!" He wasn't a beggar. This guy had guts.

"Sir, look, we—" I started.

"I haven't done anything against the Emperor! I'm doing the best I can to pay the new taxes, but I can't do it without customers!" he ranted.

Now I was curious. "We're new transfers to this area. What new taxes are you talking about?"

The salesman was taken for a moment by my question, but answered it. "The ones imposed by the major."

Hairs on my back began to raise. "Major…?"

"Nevets, of course."

Damn. That greedy pig wasn't dead. He hadn't been in Klaylos—he was in Gellenos, taxing these poor people to death. Nevets had put the Castaways of the Republic through blackmail hell for over a year. I was not going to let him torture a whole town the same way.

"Look, um…we're actually Imperial Military Police, here to apprehend the major and end his corrupt activities." My improvisational statement even got Kavid to pay attention.

"Yeah, right, sure you are, and I'm a freaking Death Saurer. You're just here to trick me into paying more tax money!" barked the store owner.

Putting an intense expression on my face, I grabbed my uniform, "Look at me! Look at this uniform! It's trashed! Ripped! Full of dust! Do you think a henchman of Nevets would look like this?" I really let the fake emotion fly. I heard Kavid fight back a laugh

"Well, not usually…" The salesman stroked his chin.

"Of course not! We're MP Zoid pilots, and Nevets escaped us by shooting us down with his damn Zoids." That's were I made my biggest mistake and success, all at the same time.

"What are you talking about?" asked the owner, "Nevets only has one Zoid! You guys don't make any sense! You must me Republic spies! I'm calling the authorities!"

Before he could reach his phone, Kavid's blaster pistol leveled against the old man's head. "Look, buddy, we need two things: clothes and information."

"Bastards! You're just thieves! Fine, take my clothes, destroy what little hope for a life I have left!" groaned the salesman.

"Great!" said Kavid, "We're halfway there. Now, where's Nevets?"

The owner debated answering that, but then shrugged his shoulders. "He's probably at his compound atop Pitra hill, where he keeps that accursed dragon of his."

Kavid and I exchanged glances. This was new. "What dragon?" I asked.

A veil seemed to lift from the owner's eyes. "You really don't work for him, do you?"

"What dragon?" I pushed.

The old man grinned. "The Geyser of Fire, he calls it."

Our new clothes fit very nicely. I went with a tan outfit that had brown highlights. Kavid's was roughly the same design, but navy blue and red. The store owner sure had some comfy stuff. When he realized that we were actually the major's arch-enemies, he was more than happy to give us some quality clothing—although I don't think it was quite the "cream of the crop." Unfortunately, the store didn't sell shoes, so we still had to walk in the same old crappy Imperial Officer dress shoes.

"Sounds like Major Nevets has been pretty busy over the last week," said Kavid once we were back in our Zoids.

"Nobody makes a new kind of Zoid in a week. He must have been working on this one in secret for a while."

"Maybe it's a Salamander?" offered Kavid. "Not many people have seen Salamanders. They could be getting the wrong idea about it."

"I don't think so. There are plenty of pictures of them. Someone in town would have seen one at some point in their life."

"Yeah, probably.

We piloted our Command Wolves up Pitra Hill with Kavid keeping a very low altitude. After only thirty minutes, the tower in Nevets' compound came into view. It was a wide, bulky tower, about four stories tall, sporting a flat roof with large hinges on the sides.

Kavid hailed me. "Something big was meant to come out of that."

Spread about the compound were patches of destroyed land, evaporated much the same way that the town of Klaylos had been.

"Whatever destroyed our town came from here." I assumed with a degree of certainty.

"And so are our friends." Stated Kavid.

"What?" I said in shock. He was right. Lying next to the tower, flipped over or on their side were piled the other two PAC-Wolves and Bruno's Gustav.

"How did Nevets get ahold of them?" I asked Kavid over the comm.

"By cutting a deal with a Vampire, Mr. Kelt." That high-pitched voice speared through my cyberphonic implants, once again hitting their mark and making me squint.

"Nevets!" I screamed as PAC-1 turned to face the tower.

The roof of the tower opened and a Liger-sized Zoid raised out of the top floor. The massively customized Zoid had a dragon-like appearance, sporting a long neck and a snake-like tail. It's torso was carried on large legs that rested on enormous claws. The dragon's back grasped onto huge wings that were as wide as the body was long. But the weapons array stole the show: missiles lined the top and bottom of its wings, and blasters rode along its tail. My jaw dropped, however, at the sight of the twin Buster Cannons laying on its back, much like a Buster Eagle's. There was no doubt that this puppy could shoot.

But Buster Cannons couldn't vaporize a town. What else could this Zoid do?

"Enjoying the sight of my new Zoid, Mr. Kelt?" gloated Nevets from the cockpit of the dragon. "I call it the 'Geyser of Fire'."

"I call it target practice, major." I slapped back, trying to sound cocky. "Who did you steal it from?" My slap worked. He got angry.

"I assure you, you worthless moron, that the Geyser of Fire is far beyond any normal man's imagination. It is 100-percent a creation of Erem Nevets, and it will lead me to infinite reward and domination of the planet known as Zi!"

"Dominate this, asshole." Kavid's Redler swooped around to the right side of the tower and opened fire at the base of the structure. The heavy steel and concrete construction teetered and collapsed in a thundering roar, sending up a burst of gray dust and smoke. The Geyser of Fire crashed to the ground right in the center of it all.

"Well, that was easy." Kavid joked.

"You know better than that, buddy." I warned. "He'll be back in seconds. Find a good firing position." A shadow passed over me. "What was that? The Geyser?" I asked Kavid.

"No. Whale King. Lots of Whale Kings. They're heading for Gellenos." Kavid could see everything from his altitude, but I had seen this kind of movement before, back by ISSO.

"There's gonna be a battle nearby. Soon. A big one. We need to get our friends out of here and rejoin the Republic."

"Leaving so soon?" Two huge Buster Cannon bolts rocketed out of the gray tower rubble and nailed PAC-1 on the right side. I went flying through the air and tumbled across the ground.

It took a good two minutes for my wits to return to me. Buster Cannons weren't Charged Particle Guns, but they were still the most powerful conventional weapon in use.

I looked back to the compound. The Geyser of Fire had arisen from the tower wreckage and was chasing Kavid. Before Kavid could circle around for a strafing pass, Nevets' Zoid unleashed a volley of missiles at the Redler. Kavid dodged most of them, but the last one managed to hit his Zoid's left back leg, and send him spinning to the ground.

Nevets' dragon flew towards a compound bunker, and hovered above it. The bunker's roof then opened, and a reload of missiles rose up and attached themselves to the Geyser as it floated in the air. It could re-arm itself without having to land! I didn't have to have the comm open to hear Nevets' laughing.

Then, things got really bad.

A dark red glow started building up in the dragon's mouth. "Didn't you always wonder what I did with all the money I blackmailed from you bounty hunters?" asked Nevets. "I didn't just have control of Klaylos, I had control of five towns. But now that the Geyser of Fire is complete, the Empire will be mine, and soon the Republic will fall. And then, all of Planet Zi will be under my control!" Nevets' laugh was abhorable. "All thanks to this, my ultimate weapon! The Plasma Particle Cannon!"

The red glow started to flicker with hyperactivity, and whatever the energy was, it looked ready to fire. And then—it did.

The beam pouring from the Geyser of Fire's mouth could best be described as a Charged Particle Beam lit on fire. It was a powerful beam of light ripping through the air, but it was blood red, and spewing bursts of energy in every direction.

Just as the blast was about to release, however, Kavid's Redler slammed its head into the dragon from the ground, knocking its aim off by just a couple of degrees—but that was enough. The Plasma Particle beam vaporized the ground next to PAC-1's front right shoulder, and dissolved the shoulder's armor plating. I jumped the CW out of the way before anymore damage could be done.

"Thanks, Kavid!"

"Let's just hope your welding job keeps this head on!"

Kavid circled around and started a firing run at the Geyser, but Nevets' beast drew upon some immense source of energy and put up a level ten shield.

"Damn!" cursed my friend. "Where does it draw all its power from?"

"From the most natural source of power for any Zoid, of course!" said Nevets. What was he talking about? "But play time is over, my old friends. Your rent is due!" The red glow started to build up and flicker again.

I took my finger off of PAC-1's weapons trigger. This guy was insane. His answer for everything was to just destroy all his problems. There was only one option against a guy like this.

PAC-1 turned around and began running off towards the mines. The Geyser of Fire released the Plasma Particle shot, erupting everything behind me as if a volcano had just been born.

"Coward! How dare you run form me!" Your death is to be my first reward!" Man, how I hated his voice.

He turned to firing his Buster Cannons at me, but they were big and slow, and therefore easy to dodge. As a side bonus they slowed him down. After a couple of minutes I reached a mine that fit perfectly with what I needed.

First, there was a cliff, and when PAC-1 came to it, I spun around, took a defensive stance, and opened fire on the major.

"So, you choose to die like a warrior. How quaint. How stupid. I can kill you in one shot!"

I played right along. "I won't die that easily, Nevets!"

"Ha!" The Geyser charged up the PPC again, just like I knew he would, and fired. And just like I knew PAC-1 could do, I pulled back hard on the controls and jumped my Command Wolf backwards off of the cliff, preparing for a very hard crash.

There was less of an explosion than I had hoped for, because the Particle Plasma cannon basically evaporated a lot of the ground on the cliffside, but a few big boulders followed me on my fall down. When I hit the ground, it hurt. It hurt a lot. A when the boulders rained down, it hurt even more. The Zoid was invincible. My shaking body was not.

Second, there was a mine entrance nearby. I had to move quickly. The cave entrance was twenty meters away, and the Geyser would clear the top of the cliff in seconds. I activated the cloaking devices, and PAC-1 disappeared from view. Then, in an aching rush, I wiggled my Zoid out of its rocky tomb and ran into the cave. The Geyser came swooping down over the boulders and fired the PPC, incinerating my former blanket of rocks.

Nevets' dragon circled the new crater it had just made outside of the mine entrance for a couple of minutes, then, satisfied with his victory, the major departed.

"Check and mate, Mr. Kelt." He gloated.

As I watched from the mine entrance, I massaged my aching head. "I'm still playing the game, Nevets."


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Five**

**Step-By-Step**

What hurt the most wasn't the fact that I had lost the battle to Nevets and his super-lizard. It wasn't even the fact that my friends could be in terrible danger as I laid in hiding down the mine shaft—although that probably should have been my greatest concern. What bothered me most was that Nevets wasn't even a very good Zoid pilot; he just had a really powerful one with impossibly strong weapons and…Plasma Armor? It must have had Plasma Armor. How else could it have survived all of our attacks?

Damn! For a technology that supposedly no one on all of Planet Zi knew about, it sure got itself spread around. I was starting to get a theory about why.

After about thirty minutes, I left the cave, and PAC-1 took a slow trot back to the major's compound. I knew I had to return to check up on my friends.

There was so sign of the Geyser of Fire on Pitra Hill. The area was totally devoid of any activity, actually, save the insect-life and an occasional animal flying by. It was too…comfortable. Kavid's Redler had been added to the pile of captured Zoids, but I could see that its cargo hold was still shut. Good. I crawled out of PAC-1 about 100-meters away and hoofed-it the rest of the way in.

Reaching the pile of Zoids, I climbed up to the Redler's cargo door and popped it open. A six-foot-long Anti-Zoid rifle slid out, right into my hands. These puppies were not made for the weak. It was quite the strain to carry it off the pile of Zoids, along with its ammunition, but it was would be worth the effort.

My next move was to get into a bunker. I picked the one next to the Zoids, betting that my friends would be in that one. When I was about ten meters away, an anti-personnel laser blast flew over my head and exploded behind me. In front of the bunker, a Helcat, most likely a sleeper, de-cloaked and re-aimed its lower cannon.

I dove right as it fired another blast. Rolling across the ground, I ended in a flat firing position and fired three rounds through the Helcat's armor with the Anti-Zoid rifle. Once inside the Zoid's body, they burst, beginning a series of light explosions and system failures. The Zoid began jerking from breakdowns and collapsed to the ground.

Anti-Zoid weapons were big and heavy, and they usually only worked on the little guys, but they sure made you feel like you had a fighting chance.

The bunker door was heavily bolted shut, so I fired another shot at the lock, and ended up blowing the entire door apart.

"Captain Kelt!" I looked down the hallway to the left, and could see some prison cells. Locked up in the first cell was Sifen.

"Sifen! Man, it's good to see you!" I said as I broke the lock open.

"Good to see you, too, sir."

"Is that the captain?" That was Mansod's voice coming from down the hall.

"Yeah, it's me. You guys all here?" I asked Sifen. His face became stone solid.

"No, sir."

My heart sank. "Who's missing? Bruno?"

Sifen danced around the answer. "Bruno is here, but locked-up farther down the hall. The Major just recently brought in Kavid. I'm not sure where he is. He was unconscious."

"Where's Katrana?" I could sense that Sifen was avoiding her for some reason.

Sifen hid his nervousness behind an emotionless face, but I read through him. "She cut a deal with Nevets."

"What?" I gasped. My fears were coming true.

"She…she paid for her freedom with a Particle Charger."

My shock trickled down to anger. "You're lying!"

Sifen stood solid. "I don't lie, Jeremy. Not to you."

I didn't want to believe him, but what he said fit perfectly with what I had started to theorize earlier today. Katrana Sared had told us that there were no other Plasma Armor-creating devices, or Particle Chargers, on all of Planet Zi, save the one she used to create the PAC-Wolves. However, since their creation, three more Zoids had been altered to carry Plasma Armor. What did they all have in common? They were all enemies of the Castaways of the Republic, and they all had contact with Katrana well before they fought us. There could be only one reason: she was trying to kill us.

"Where did she go?"

"She did not say." Said Sifen. "She gave nothing more than empty promises of returning to save us."

"Damn." That was from Kavid. I turned to see him and Bruno standing in the hall behind us. That guy could break out of anywhere. "She betrayed us again! She betrayed the whole damn Republic! I'd bet it was all for that asshole father of hers."

"Then I say she is at Mt. Hoploy." Offered Sifen.

"Agreed," I said, "But first, we've got a more urgent problem to deal with."

Mansod scratched his head. "Nevets?"

"We can't let him truck that dragon around killing everybody he sees." Said Kavid.

Mansod spoke again, "I heard him say this was a perfect time to go out and show everyone his invincibility."

Kavid and I looked at each other once again. Kavid spoke first this time. "The Battle at Gellenos!"

Sifen looked concerned, "Battle?"

I nodded. "It's a doozy."

"Doozy" was an understatement.

PAC-1, PAC-3 and PAC-4 walked down the hill, followed by Guno's silvery Gustav. We could soon see the town of Gellenos laying at the base of the hill, staring in silent awe towards what was scattered just past it across the Veergati desert. Beyond the desert town, carpeting the sands of the Southern Frontier, swarmed a sea of Zoids, engulfed in a rain of laser blasts and bursts of fire. Huge beams of energy speared the melee of metal, followed by violent ruptures and sparkles of steel. Missiles buzzed the surface of it all, searching for their prey, and once found, the targets blew to ashes, darkening the beautiful tan sand blanketing across the sea of dunes. Towers of smoke rose like tentacles into the bright blue sky, feeding the winds waving like flags into the southwest breeze.

"There must be a thousand Zoids down there." Said Mansod in child-like amazement.

"I'd estimate three-thousand-five-hundred." Calculated Sifen. Nerd. Still, it was good to have him with us. I was afraid he might not be able to join us, since PAC-3's legs were chopped off by the Stone Dragon a week ago. But Bruno was the best engineer in the entire Southern Division of the Republic's forces—PAC-3 was walking again in just under three hours.

Kavid didn't join us on our return to Gellenos. Since we needed a Particle Charger, we thought he should take a look back at the Bay of Rocks and see if Namor Bruticus, a.k.a. the "Death Sniper," may have left an extra Charger laying around. He was given one, maybe he had an extra? We had looted his stronghold once already, but it never hurt to try a second time. Besides, Kavid would be back pretty soon, right? I was starting to get a little twitchy.

"Where is Major Nevets?" asked Mansod. Good question. We all figured he would be here by now, but there was no sign of him.

"Perhaps this was not his destination." Offered Sifen.

"He'll come," He couldn't pass this up, I could feel it, "If he's going to show off his new power, this is the best place in the world to do it."

"Agreed." Sifen nodded.

"I don't know about you guys," I said, changing the subject, "but I'm tired of helping the Empire. We're going to have to pick a side to fight for until Nevets shows up, but I'd like to fight for the Helic Republic again."

"There is no better choice, sir." Sifen was rarely this mushy.

"Let's do it!" cheered Mansod.

"I don't think I'll be mucha help downa there, Cap'n. Mind if I jus' wait fer Kavid?" asked Bruno.

"That was my plan already, pal. Keep an eye out for Nevets, too.

For someone who wanted to show off his invincibility, Nevets was sure taking his time—and it was making me nervous. Whatever his reason was, it only helped us. It gave Kavid more time to come back.

It was such a strange irony, though, that the only thing that could destroy Plasma Armor was the same thing that created it—the Particle Charger. Overcharge the process and _bang! _Instead of strengthening atoms, it breaks them apart. My hypothesis as to why the Plasma Particle Cannon could so easily destroy Plasma Armor was that it fired a Charged Particle Beam through the center of an overcharged Particle Charger Beam. The result broke down the CPB just enough to create plasma fire, but letting enough of the Beam through to reap the benefits of both beams. The blast both could violently destroy and break down at the atomic level all at the same time. It was the most powerful blast ever created.

How could Nevets power something like that?

The battlefield was a melee of nightmare. Smashed metal and shards of shrapnel flew off in every direction. You gambled with every footstep, and your life was the ante. If a laser blast or missile wasn't flying at you, an exploding Zoid was. These guys were out for blood, the passion had consumed them—driven them mad. I doubted they could remember why they were fighting anymore.

Our PAC-Wolves struggled to remain in some type of formation as we swerved through the ever-growing junkyard. A squad of Molgas took notice of our group and opened immediate fire on us. Their worthless shells just ricocheted off of our armor plates. This seemed as good a time as any to let Mansod have some practice.

"Private, show us what you've got." I ordered.

"Y-yes, sir." PAC-4 started to walk towards the Molgas, but then I growled PAC-1, and Mansod got the hint—PAC-4 broke into a sprint.

I figured it was time we all jumped into the heat of action. "Sifen, take on that Saber Tiger. I'm going to give some support to that Liger Schneider over there."

"Yes, sir."

Mansod was having a good time tearing apart the Molgas, and I knew Sifen would be fine. I had seen a Schneider getting torn up by a Liger Zero-X and felt I should go save its life, whether it wanted it or not. Liger Zero pilots were usually pretty cocky—but getting to the Liger proved to be harder than I thought.

An Elephander plowed through a pile of dead Zoids and tried to grab me with its trunk claw. I barely managed to jump free, but as I did so I crashed into the body of a deceased Saicurtis. Turning around, I could see that the Elephander was heavily damaged. That was good. The massive attacker rotated its turret and fired a series of shots at PAC-1, which bounced off, but knocked my wolf back down.

Trying to regain my wits, I looked up to see the foot of the elephant raise into the air, attempting to smash down upon PAC-1. Out of reflex, I closed my eyes and turned my head, but when the foot hit, nothing happened. PAC-1 was undamaged.

Oh, yeah. Plasma Armor. I forgot.

I stood my Command Wolf back up and rammed into the underbelly of the Elephander as its leg was lifted and managed to knock it backwards. The massive Zoid went smashing down on its right side, increasing the amount of dents and breaks smothering its body.

I then noticed the break on the left side of its belly, aimed the 150mm turret and fired. The explosion almost knocked PAC-1 backwards. I must have hit a good system. The Elephander was done.

Wiping the sweat off my brow, I prepared to move back to the Schneider, but shook with fright as a Helcat leapt through the air and tried to swipe me. Its claw hit PAC-1's armor and shattered. PAC-1 jumped back and fired, destroying the feline.

But it wasn't over yet. Three Rev Raptors crawled atop the carcass of the fallen Elephander and stared at me in hunger. I managed to shoot one, but the other pounced onto me and attempted to tear my Command Wolf apart. PAC-1 bucked them off, and then I blasted them, sending them crashing back into the Elephander.

When I looked back at the fighting Ligers, I screamed. The Schneider hung impaled on the Zero-X' left blades, its legs dangling lifeless, with smoke pouring from its back.

Energy started pouring through my veins again, and I started firing at the Zero-X, catching it by surprise, but not doing much damage. It dropped the Schneider and turned to face me. It spread its blades in attack mode; it probably thought this was going to be easy. Liger Zero-X jumped into the air, dodging my shots and came falling down into my position—I wasn't that stupid. I rolled PAC-1 out of the way as it smacked the ground. As my CW stood back up, I leapt at the Liger's left blades and had PAC-1 bite them, then snap them off.

LZX roared with anger and jumped away. My 150mm cannon gave it a good spanking. The Liger spun around and tried to blast me with its little twin cannon, but the energy shells just bounced off PAC-1's armor as I ran towards the Imperial Zoid, raised my Zoid's front right leg and slashed the Liger's face. Zero-X jumped forward, attempting to slash me with its facial blades. They simply broke off. As the Zoid passed PAC-1, my Wolf chomped on the Liger's tail and was jerked behind it—but I wouldn't let go. PAC-1 pulled and yanked at LZX' tail like a puppy to a sock until the feline Zoid's body-part ripped out, and the Liger shrieked in pain.

Zero-X gave up and tried to run away, but my passion was too intense. I jumped PAC-1 on top of the escaping Zoid and crashed down onto its upper back. PAC-1 began tearing through the armor plating, ripping its torso apart with indestructible claws, scooping shrapnel high into the air. The hunger that flowed through me was all-consuming. The dig was soon deep enough that we exposed the LZX' Zoidcore. PAC-1 opened its mouth wide, dipped its head down, and…

Was rammed off of the Ligers back.

"That's enough!" barked a voice over the comm.

PAC-1 rolled across the ground, regained its stance, and we prepared to destroy whomever took away our victory meal. PAC-3 stood between us and the Liger Zero-X. The shock of seeing Sifen's Zoid slapped some sense into me—a little sense.

"What are you doing, sir?" demanded Sifen. "Are you insane? Do you realize what you were about to do?"

"I…I was going to…hungry…so hungry…" the passion slipped from my veins. It was just like the Legend of the Blade Liger Vampire. It would tear through its opponents and devour their Zoidcores. Could it be that PAC-1 and I were the same way? Perhaps when a Zoid and its pilot formed a bond, basic instinct took over and they became primal. After all, it was rumored that many Zoids of Legend had grown powerful by consuming Zoidcores…

"Sirs!" cried Mansod over the comm, "Look! It's some kind of new dragon!"


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Six**

**Archfiend**

I spun PAC-1 around, knowing immediately what Mansod was talking about. He must not have seen Nevets' new little toy, but I had—and I was scared.

Swooping across the town of Gellenos, carrying more weapons than before, the Geyser of Fire made an attack run on the sea of Zoids that flooded the desert.

"Nevets must have been refitting his dragon with new weapons all this time." I deduced. "It's carrying big cannons now, one on each leg. But I can't understand why he would need them."

"What should we do, Captain?" asked Sifen.

I bit my pride and answered with the only reply that I knew was right. "We run for our lives." My friends were shocked to hear me say such a thing, but they nodded their heads. "Let's see if we can get some of these warriors to follow us."

We called out screams of "Run for your life!" and "A Zoid with a super-weapon has arrived, get out of here!" on multiple frequencies, but nobody wanted to listen to us. Everyone was too busy tearing each other apart. We just sounded like poor Republic Command Wolf pilots giving up on their country.

PAC-1 climbed up onto the carcass of the Elephander I had defeated earlier, and we took a view of the field. The Geyser of Fire had come under the barrage of a squad of Gunblusters, but it raised its shield and easily survived the attack. As soon as the Gunblusters gave up their assault, the Geyser's mouth began to glow. In mere moments, it's wings were raised high, it pulled its head back, then jabbed it forward while belching out a huge burst of Plasma Particle Beam. Hundreds of Zoids were evaporated by the mad levels of energy, which gave the sick illusion of a dragon incinerating its prey.

A sizzling pit of emptiness now sat in the middle of the sea of warring Zoids. Black smoke slithered from the sides of the Geyser's face, giving it a massive, dark smile. Hundreds more Zoids took notice of the major's presence now, and began to panic. Swarms of metallic beasts began to run all over each other, attempting to escape, no longer caring which country they were loyal to.

As the chaos ensued, a few valiant warriors stood up to the Geyser of Fire. But then, a curious thing happened: the dragon's new spread of heavy cannons fired spherical shells in five directions across the field. The Geyser quickly raised its level-ten shield to protect itself from the oncoming assault.

Panzers, Berserk Fuhrers, Gunblusters, Iron Kongs and Gojulas' fired up at the Geyser of Fire, nailing the shield with the most firepower ever to hit a Zoid since the legendary battles with the Death Saurer. The explosion sent shockwaves so powerful that any Zoid near the major was blown to pieces. Waves of Zoids, both dead and alive, crashed over themselves from the burst. A charcoal-black cloud of smoke rushed out from the center of the blast, blinding every man and machine in the area.

Comm-lines were flooded with calls of confusion and panic. No one knew where the dragon had come from, and both sides were blaming each other for its existence. No one was thanking the other for its possible destruction.

But I knew that it wasn't that easy. Super-Zoids never died that easy. And I was right.

A massive burst of Plasma Particle energy seemed to ignite the cloud of smoke. Energy beams fired all about the cloud, like they were being fired in different directions. The cloud was engulfed in the beams, shooting across the cloud, following the path of…the spheres! The spheres soon absorbed four full blasts of Plasma Particle Beams, and then on cue, they fired to a fifth sphere, sitting high above the cloud at an apex, like the top of a pyramid. When the energy hit the apex, it was fired back down—straight down—a blinding, deafening blast as strong as four Plasma Particle Beams. Upon hitting its ground-zero, there was another explosion—an explosion over ten-times more powerful than the one moments before. Over two-thirds of the machines on the impossibly-huge sea of Zoids were instantly obliterated. Those on the edges may have escaped evaporation, but almost all were smashed to pieces by the aftermath's shockwave.

And no one saw it coming.

How long had passed? I…I didn't know. Darkness…there was darkness. Out…I had to get out. Couldn't…couldn't get out. I was strapped to my seat…hanging sideways. Why was I sideways? Light? Was that light? Reflecting off of the control panel. Just a pin-point beam, coming through the windshield. That meant…I wasn't dead. I was near the surface of…of the ground?

I tilted my aching head up, frantically feeling for the Emergency Power Controls. I found them! With a flick of a button, I could see again, although everything was tinted red. I quickly wished I couldn't see.

I was buried beneath a deep pile of massacred Zoids—their lives brutally ripped out of them by Nevets and his damn Geyser of Fire. Somehow, most likely thanks to PAC-1's Plasma Armor, I survived the holocaust, and now I had to figure out how to free myself from my machine grave.

"I hope you're still functioning, buddy." I told PAC-1, "'Cause we've got a lot of work to do." My Command Wolf let out a weak growl, and its main systems came back on line. "Thanks, pal."

I worked the control bar and attempted to move the Wolf's legs. It groaned and struggled, but managed to wriggle itself free of the pinning weight of a crashed Liger Jager.I shouldn't have been surprised that the legs weren't broken, since they were "indestructible," but I was starting to worry about that claim.

After about twenty minutes of effort, PAC-1 cleared the top of the machine graveyard, and I lost my breath. The sea of Zoids had become an arch of Zoids, with a massive, deep crater taking an enormous bite out of the battlefield on the southwest side. A massive arch of non-vaporized Zoids still existed on the northeast side I guess Nevets' aim was a little off.

Amazingly, human survivors were scattered across the piles of death. Pilots, terrified by what they had survived, began crawling out of their Zoids, at first happy to see the sky, then scared out of their minds by what they saw. I was no superman. The seen shocked me, too. I sat frozen in PAC-1's cockpit for what seemed like days, but was probably only minutes.

Once again I was snapped into reality by PAC-3, this time crawling across the Zoid carcass' towards me. Sifen hailed me.

"Are you all right, sir?"

"Sifen. It's good to see you alive, my friend. F.Y.I., PAC-3 isn't looking too good." Sifen's Zoid had burns across its armor plating, and warps and dents across its body. There were even some parts missing.

"We were lucky to survive, sir. A few dozen humans have, but that is all. Our PAC-Wolves are the only Zoids still functioning, I'm afraid."

"And Mansod's, of course. Where is he at?"

Sifen's face wiped itself clear of emotion as he tried to hide his feelings. "I found…part of PAC-4. It was horribly damaged by the explosion. I can find no other traces of Plasma Armor in the area." Sifen's emotionless face started to break. "I do not believe Private Mansod survived."

My heart dropped so hard I nearly threw-up. Guilt began to consume me. A "Castaway" was gone! No! It wasn't fair! He tried so hard! We were always so damn hard on Mansod—he was such an idiot…but dammit! That kid had a ton of potential!

I wiped away a tear. "Sifen, from this day forward, we do not stop until Nevets is dead, or we die trying to kill him."

"Yes, sir." Sifen thought for a moment. "I never did like the Private's coffee, but it kept me going."

"That's the way Mansod was, Corporal," I said, "It was hard to stomach him sometimes, but he was always there to help."

"Yes, sir."

"Let's go check up on Kavid."

Thinking that this day could not get any worse was a foolish mistake. Sifen pointed out that we could not proceed without any ammunition, and, disturbingly, we stood upon a plethora of ammo that would never be used by its Zoids ever again.

In less than an hour, our PAC-Wolves were re-stocked with energy shells and missiles from fallen Command Wolves and Pteras'. I have never overcome the feeling of guilt for what we did, no matter how justified it may have been.

Thankfully, Gellenos was relatively untouched by the battle with Nevets. A few buildings had their windows shattered, but that was about it.

We found Bruno sitting in his Gustav, right where we had left him—next to the tailor shop.

"Cap…Cap'n Kelt! You're alive!" Our Engineering buddy's red eyes were bursting with moisture. "And Sife! Sife, youse okay!" He jumped out of his silvery Zoid and nearly broke our backs with one of his legendary bear hugs.

"So surprised to see us, Bruno?" I asked.

His cheeks grew red. "Well, I'm's sorry to say yeah. That wuz the biggest explosion I'd ever seen. It just seemed imposs' to survive."

"But Bruno, I hadn't told you I was dead yet." I winked.

The big guy thought about it for a second, then started laughing so loud it rattled the Gustav. "Thatsa right! Youse didn't tells me that! Im's sorry, Cap'n. I promise to never doubt yas again."

Sifen could only study us in confusion. Bruno then looked around. "Where's Mansod?" Our explanation really broke his uplifted mood.

"I loved his coffee." Said Bruno. "Kept me going."

I took a deep breath. "Let's get down to business. Bruno, have you heard anything from Kavid?"

"Yessir. He ain't found nuthin' out at the Bay of Rocks. He's comin' back here as fast as he can."

"This news significantly changes our plans, Captain Kelt." Analyzed Sifen. "We need to wait here for Kavid, then decide a new plan of attack."

I looked down at the Zoid graveyard, then farther north, when it struck me. "We have been fools, Sifen. We have known this entire time where a Particle Charger is, but we sent Kavid the opposite direction."

It only took Sifen a second to process the idea. "Mt. Hoploy."

"Mt. Hoploy. It's where the PAC-Wolves were first made." I whipped around with new vigor. "Bruno! Get a message to Kavid with that long-range transmitter of yours. Tell him that we're heading for Mt. Hoploy by way of the Trail."

"Yessir!"

As we entered the cockpits of our Zoids, Sifen appeared on my HUD-Comm. "Just a reminder, sir. It is more than likely that Katrana Sared has returned to Mt. Hoploy as well."

"I'm counting on it."


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Seven**

**From Whence Ye Came**

It was painful to re-enter the Helic Republic, especially via the same route that we had left it over two years ago. At that time we were running away from Mt. Hoploy—now we were running to it.

So much had changed for us: we were no longer soldiers; now we were hungry, downtrodden bounty hunters—and one of us was gone. We were still piloting PAC-Wolves—but they weren't the same ones. Our main Enemy wasn't a Republic Officer abusing the power of the Particle Charger, now it was an Imperial one.

But occurrences in life always seem to move in circles. Our adventures with the PAC-Wolves began at Mt. Hoploy, and one way or another, they would end there.

Kavid rejoined our convoy by the time we reached the Hoploy Ridge Trail—the path through the woods that didn't exist until Kavid, Sifen, Mansod and I were attacked by an Iron Kong two years ago. We decided to mount our Zoids on Bruno's Gustav's trailer get some rest by riding it out in the Gustav cockpit. It almost worked.

"It's unfortunate you didn't find anything at the Bay of Rocks, Kavid." Said Sifen.

"Yeah, well, it has been looted pretty clean, especially by us." Kavid's tone was full of disappointment. "But after what you guys went through, I wish I would have looked a little bit harder. Despite his feelings about not having fought with us, I was glad he wasn't at Gellenos—his Redler would have been pulverized.

"Just stay focused. Remember, Katrana probably knows we're coming, so we need to watch for traps of any kind." I ordered.

"That's right," Kavid cut in, "That bitch is out to get us."

"Watch it, Lieutenant."

"Ugh. Back to the rank crap."

"Cap'n?" I was surprised to hear Bruno enter the conversation.

"Yes, Bruno?"

"I'ma not gonna sit this one out. I'ma fightin' with youse guys." Our big friend said with his chest held high.

"There's not much your Gustav can do, big buddy." Said Kavid.

"I don'ta care! I'ma fightin'!" bellowed Bruno.

"Okay, okay, no need to get riled up. I'm happy to have you with us, Mr. Saltus." Bruno smiled at my using of his last name.

"There it is." Pointed out Sifen.

The branches of the trees seemed to act like curtains as the Gustav rounded a corner and revealed the towering green slope of Mt. Hoploy. It was not a decidedly large mountain, but it was a pretty one. Its forests were not too thick, and it had a rich supply of green plains; it was a great location for Zoids, which is why the Republic built a massive sub-surface base in the mountain eight years ago.

"Okay, boys, let's try our new little attack. Get into your Zoids and prepare for the 'Castaways Come Home' maneuver."

It wasn't much, but dammit, it was gonna work.

Boy, I had been walking Zoids through sand and soft grass for so long that I had forgotten just how difficult it was to keep a Zoid quiet in a dry forest. There were so many things to snap and crunch that stealth was quite impossible.

Still, it felt good to see life again. No more dead deserts or near-empty grass fields. I just hoped that I wouldn't bring any harm to this beautiful place.

Sifen and I emerged from the trees in our PAC-Wolves, and began our nervous trek up the grass plain towards the hidden entrance to the Mt. Hoploy Command Center. Bruno parked his silvery Gustav at the tree line, with its lone weapon exposed.

About 500-meters from the entrance, I inhaled a deep breath, and took the first step. My quivering finger pressed the comm button. "Katrana, this is Jeremy. I am well aware of your problems with us, but a new factor has arisen that requires both of our assets to destroy. I beg of you, please, let us work together before the major makes his move against us."

I waited for almost a minute, but heard no reply. Next step: try harder.

"Katrana, without a Particle Charger, we cannot defeat Major Nevets. No one can. You must see that. If you don't give us one, then Nevets will destroy both the Republic and the Empire. Thousands have already died. We have to stop him!" I was starting to sweat.

A response finally flickered onto my HUD-Comm—but it wasn't Katrana…it was Bruticus!

"Sared is dead, Captain, and I can assure you that you won't get any help from us." With that, the image disappeared. Massive panels in front of the Command Center opened out of the ground, and the Stone Dragon and Blade Liger Vampire leapt out from below the surface.

"Sifen!" I screamed in panic, "Break!" As I scampered away, I could see PAC-3 standing its ground. "Sifen? What are you doing?" I called back.

"Captain, I've told you before to keep your cool. I'm staying with our attack plan, and I request that you do the same." Damn. It felt like suicide, but that old soldier was built of steel. He deserved my rank more than I did.

Pulling PAC-1 around, I retook my position and aimed for the Stone Dragon. I had beaten it once before, I could do it again. The Dragon's appearance wasn't as impressive as before; its starboard torso was still burn-black—it just had new armor and weapons attached to it. The Vampire was just as sinister as ever, but I'd bet it had Plasma Armor. Who didn't these days?

"This is where we settle it, Kelt. Once and for all." Threatened Namor. Ever the melodramatic.

"You've really got to be a little more creative with your evil threats, Bruticus. That was weak." I slapped back at him.

"So was your response." Pointed out Skyler. Touché.

"Where is Katrana?" asked Sifen.

"I already told you: dead. Along with her father." I could feel Bruticus' grin. "You're not going to get the last Particle Charger." I suppose it didn't take a genius to figure out why we were here.

"Don't you realize if you don't use it to destroy the Geyser of Fire, Major Nevets will end up killing you, too?" Sifen drilled at them.

"We can hold our own." Replied Skyler.

"You fools!" I barked. "Sifen and I just saw two thousand Zoids get incinerated by Nevets and his Geyser! As for its power against Plasma Armor? Look at us! There are only two of us left! Mansod is gone! His PAC-Wolf was destroyed!" I paused to let that sink in. "Nevets has no need for you. You cannot possibly stand up to him. You will die! Get it through your damn heads!" I was starting to breathe hard.

Skyler seemed to be thinking about what I had said, but Bruticus just blew it off. "Bah! You're just trying to trick us! Your third wolf is simply hiding in the trees, waiting to strike. I will not be defeated by some lowly Command Wolf again!"

With that, the Stone Dragon charged us, its vulcan cannons spinning streams of highly explosive energy through the air. Sifen and I jumped away and ran around to the sides of the stampeding but very sluggish Liger, and activated our shields (Bruno was kind enough to fix-up PAC-1's). We performed an Emerald Scorpion Attack, sandwich-slamming the Dragon and flung it into the air.

Now that Namor was temporarily taken down, I peered back at the Blade Liger Vampire. It hadn't moved! What was Skyler doing? It wasn't prepping a Charged Particle blast—it's cannons were still flipped back.

Sifen hailed me. "Now is a good time for 'Castaways Come Home,' sir."

"Punch it!"

PAC-1 and PAC-3 ran full speed towards the Command Center entrance, since, basically, the "Castaways Come Home" maneuver was "Avoid-Any-Opposition-and-Make-a-Break-for-the-Door." Hey, it works.

We were about 200 meters away when a volley of missiles rained down upon us. Our Zoids tumbled and flipped as the blasts knocked us in every direction. As PAC-1 shook off the blast, I could see the Stone Dragon charging us with its blades fully extended—blades that had cut the legs off of PAC-3. This was dangerous.

"Sifen, get out of here!" PAC-3's thrusters fired and saved my friend, but there was nothing I could do—I was going to get hit…until a big silvery dome slammed into the starboard side of the Dragon, knocking it rolling away from PAC-1.

"Bruno! Thank you, buddy!"

"Jus' go, Cap'n. Go! Go! Go!"

I nodded and spun PAC-1 around and followed PAC-3 towards the entrance. The Stone Dragon stood back up, fired its turret cannon at Bruno—which did no good against his Zoid's thick armor—then chased after us.

"You…you can't get away! Skyler, cut them off!" ordered Namor. The Blade Liger finally moved, but not in the way that Bruticus had intended. The Stone Dragon slid to a stop to keep from crashing into the black, gold and silver Zoid that now blocked its path.

"Zaun! What are you doing?" barked Namor.

The Vampire's Attack Boosters flipped over, and its twin Charged Particle Beams began to sparkle with energy. "As much as I hate to admit it, Kelt is right, Bruticus. If we don't stop Nevets, he _will_ kill us."

"You bonehead! Nevets is our ally! He helped us! He promised we would stay alive and be his generals!" Bruticus was frantic with fear.

"No, Namor. Erem Nevets' word is garbage. I believed it once before, and he tried to kill me, regardless of my loyalty to him. If we don't stop him, we are all dead."

I suddenly realized that I had stopped running to the entrance so that I could listen to their conversation.

"No! I will never support the cause of that bastard Jeremy Kelt! Even if it means my death, at least I will die with some self-respect!" With that, the Stone Dragon opened fire on Skyler, but despite the moderate impact damage, the Vampire stood its ground… and then fired back.

The Charged Particle Beams ripped through the air and scorched across the Stone Dragon's body. This time, it was obvious that Skyler was shooting at full power. The Dragon's armor and weapons melted, vaporized and exploded away, but the powerful Zoid did not budge under the incredible stress. Once the blasts had run their course, Namor's Zoid stood completely engulfed in smoke and wreckage this time.

"You…you traitorous bastard." With that, the Stone Dragon slowly trotted away into the forest and disappeared from my life.

Skyler hailed me directly. "Go. Go before I change my mind."

"Thank you, Zaun. We're even, now." I ran PAC-1 into the Command Center, only feeling slightly safer.

Mt. Hoploy's Sub-Surface Command Center was even more lifeless than the Imperial Southern Scientific Outpost was when we infiltrated it. Not one, not a single soul drifted through this massive structure.

Luckily, Bruticus and Skyler had left enough lights on so that we could find our ways around. Our memories guided us as well, although there had been a few changes during our two-year absence.

Focusing on our objective, we headed for the Officer's Quarters, searching for the room of Lieutenant Katrana Sared. In only a couple of minutes, we found it. Unable to contain my energy, I raised my foot and kicked the door in. It didn't fly very far before it his something…something big…something that yelled out in pain.

"Ow! Dammit, Jeremy! Ever think about turning the knob?"

"Kavid! Oh, man, I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking. I forgot about you."

"No, really? Ow. That was my bad shoulder, too. Ow." Kavid hadn't followed our assault on the main entrance because he was sneaking into the landing pad entrance up at 3,000 meters. We figured Katrana wouldn't expect us to attack from above since she didn't know that Kavid now flew a Redler.

Sifen went straight to business. "Have you found anything in here?"

"Not yet, but I haven't had much time to look." We began scouring Katrana's room for anything that could lead us to the Particle Charger, and the frustration began to grow. The supply of books about holograms and stealth technology was ample, but there was absolutely nothing about Plasma Armor.

"Perhaps she hid the information elsewhere." Suggested Sifen after about an hour.

"A technology that only she and her father are supposed to know about? I don't think she'd take the risk."

I agreed with Kavid. An idea popped. "Wait a minute. Her father! Where would her father be buried?"

Kavid looked concerned for my sanity, but Sifen caught on. "In the Officer's Memorial Chamber."

"Is that around here?" asked Kavid.

"No," I sighed, "It's outside of New Helic City."


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Eight**

**Ignition**

As PAC-1's cockpit hatch closed, it mimicked the feeling of desperation engulfing my heart. New Helic City was over a week away from the Southern Frontier. In a week's time, Major Nevets could obliterate half of the Europa Continent. Kavid would have to go there ahead of us in his Redler, but it had no Plasma Armor—there was no way he could survive even a conventional weapons attack. The dangers were too high, but we had no choice. We would just be sending him to his death.

My eyesight was gazing into oblivion as my Zoid walked back up to the plain atop Mt. Hoploy, but PAC-1's growl re-awoke me.

The Blade Liger Vampire and Bruno's silvery Gustav were gone. Odds are the big guy chased after Skyler. One lone Zoid stood out on the green grass, staring directly back at me. It was a moderately-sized Zoid, with a black main body, ruby-red armor and…and silver weapons! It was a Command Wolf! _It was my original PAC-Wolf-1_!

As for who was piloting it, well, there could only be one answer to that question. I flicked on my comm. "Katrana. How do you like the cup-holders?"

Her solemn face appeared on my HUD-Comm. "Don't make this any harder, Jeremy."

Rain drops started to pat my Zoids windshield. "We don't have to make this into anything, Katrana. You can help us."

"I am sorry for having betrayed you and your friends as much as I have, but I swore to my father that I would never stop until you all paid for what you did to him." She was forcing her pain to become anger, even though truly, it wasn't there.

"Your father was a freaking lunatic, Katrana!" Bad move, Kavid. "And now it sounds like he made you feel guilty for his mistakes. Don't do it!"

Thunder began to rumble across the mountain, and lightning soon followed in spectacular obedience. Nearby, a bolt of electricity struck a tree, striking the plant-life like a wick, and igniting a fire that began scampering across the dry grass, daring the increasing rainfall to put it out.

"My father was a great man," praised Katrana, "He needed what you took away from him."

"But even you saw that he was wrong—" I tried to emphasize.

"Damn the morals of it all!" she slapped back. "No one would have died! The Particle Charger doesn't kill! You've seen that!"

"No," solemnly responded Kavid, "But it makes you wish you were dead."

Katrana was silent. "Enough. I'm through with this talk. My mind was made up the day my father died. You took the glory he deserved away from him, and now you must pay the price for what you did to him!"

Another thunder and lightning combo shook the sky as the fire grew. Katrana's PAC-Wolf fired its 150mm cannon at me, and the energy shells shook PAC-1 a lot more than the rain did. Sifen ran PAC-3 next to me and opened its missile launchers, but I called my friends. "No, guys. Let me do this. When you get down to it, this is between me and her."

PAC-3's dripping wet launcher panels slowly closed and the Wolf backed off. Kavid called in. "She's all yours, buddy. Just don't lose."

I was too lost in concentration to let Kavid's remark bother me. Katrana ran to the left and started downhill, making for the forest. Another lightning bolt hit nearby. My targeting sights ached to lock onto her PAC-1, but she was too good, too maneuverable. Still, I attempted to predict her movements and fired a series of shots at her feather-footed Zoid. They all missed.

Despite the massive downpour of rain, the forest fire was upheld by the constant input of lightning bolts across the widely spread trees. The dry ground needed a good burning, and it was getting one.

In this sparse forest, the only place Katrana could hide from me was behind the flames, and she had plenty to make use of. A large oak tree was drenched in fire, and the original PAC-1 jumped behind it, spun its cannon at me and started a barrage. I took a couple of hits before I dove behind a boulder. The giant rock soon exploded from the assault, and left me open for another assault.

"Katrana! This is a waste of time!" I pleaded, "We are in two indestructible Zoids! Our weapons are useless against each other. Let's solve this another way." Despite what I had just said, I wanted to prove the paint, and fired three shots at her PAC-Wolf—they all just ricocheted away uselessly.

Then, curiously, she froze. Katrana just stood about 100-meters away from me, holding a motionless stance. I jumped as a lightning bolt slammed the ground behind me, unable to stand still myself.. Rain ran off of the dented armor of her PAC-Wolf and dripped off the end of her 150mm cannon as she stared at me in dead silence. What was she waiting for?

Finally, she spoke. "You're almost right, Jeremy, but I'm afraid you've made your last mistake."

Did I see the sparks sizzling out of the side of her Command Wolf's jaw before it happened, or did I just have some gut-instinct? I don't know, but whatever it was, it saved my life.

Katrana's PAC-Wolf cocked its head back and dropped its jaw. In an instant, a blinding white burst of energy fired from its mouth sending a waving stream through the air—right at me. But that gut-instinct or whatever it was already had me moving, and PAC-1 was leaping to the right, avoiding the beam by centimeters.

It was an overcharged Particle Charger beam, or "Wave-Smacker," as Bruticus liked to call it. It was a blast specifically designed to destroy whatever it hits. Not as violent as a CPG, but if used correctly, just as destructive.

As PAC-1 landed, I knew that speed was the only thing that could save my life. Dashing for Katrana, I pounced through the fire before she could charge-up another blast. Our two wolves clanged together in a metallic smash that drove my cyberphonic implants crazy. Even if it was a waste of time, I had to stay face-to-face with her—she couldn't have any shooting distance.

My veteran PAC-1 slammed my original PAC-1's head to the ground and scraped its neck with its claws. Katrana's Zoid fought to escape, but my Zoid had it pinned.

"Get off of me, Jeremy! I won't let you live!" Katrana's voice was starting to get panicky.

"If I have to hold you here forever, I will." I warned her. Hopefully it wouldn't come to that. Fate makes the rules, though.

The rules just changed.

"Jeremy! Get the hell out of there!" Kavid's scream was the loudest I would ever hear him yell. I couldn't even turn my head before the red flash hit PAC-1's cockpit with a thundering roar twice that of the storm raining down upon us.

My Zoid's rattling made concentration difficult. I could sense that I was flying yet again, a victim of a massive concussive blast. This was something that pilots in "normal" Zoids never had to deal with. Their Zoids always just exploded when hit this hard. Mine didn't—it just flew off. This was starting to get annoying. Naturally, a hard, tumbling crash followed the flight. I seemed to remember that my original PAC-1 could somehow reduce the impact of concussive force from blasts and crashes. This second one didn't seem to have that feature. That first guy must have been special upgrades—like the cup holders.

"Kavid, what got me?" I asked as PAC-1 ran out of the burning forest moments later. I was lucky my cyberphonic implants still worked.

"Twin Buster Cannons."

"Crap. Nevets."

"He nailed you long range. I'm flying to intercept." Kavid took off in his heroic way.

"Don't be a fool! You can't stop him!" I begged.

"Well, neither can you. I'm not going to just sit around and wait for him to incinerate all of us. I'm going down with a little pride. I suggest you do the same." A perfectly-timed lightning bolt accentuated his bold statement.

I smiled up at my friend. "You're right. Let's go. You with us, Sifen?"

"Of course, sir, as is Mansod." That really got my blood boiling.

I suddenly realized that we had lost track of Katrana. Where had she gone to after getting shot by the Geyser's Buster Cannons? She couldn't be hurt, not in a PAC-Wolf. Now I was really nervous.

When we approached Nevets' dragon, we realized we were too late.

The Geyser of Fire hovered in front of the Mt. Hoploy Command Center's main entrance. The Zoid's mouth was red hot, and it slowly pushed its neck forward, spewing its virtual lava of death straight into the core of the mountain. A massive eruption was ignited throughout the small mountain. Bursts of fire shot out of hidden vents and exhaust ports spread across the mountainside. The landing pad up at 3,000-meters was blasted off of its supports and came sliding down the slope, stripping off rocks and plant-life as it scraped the surface.

The entire forty-acre sub-surface complex that took seven years to dig out and another three to build, was obliterated in less than thirty seconds.

Then, as quickly as the structure exploded, it started to implode. The mountainside began crashing in upon itself, desperately attempting to fill the gap left by the obliteration of the Command Center. A deafening roar shook the air as massive potholes caved in all about the mountain.

"You bastard!" screamed Kavid, "Have you no morals at all?" His Zoid rocketed across the stormy sky, held back from full speed only by the constant firing of the Redler's Hybrid Thruster Cannons. Shells of energy bashed against the body of the Geyser, but they did no harm. However, their constant concussive force did force the dragon to lose a fair amount of altitude.

_Why didn't it put up its shield?_ I asked myself.

PAC-3 ran up next to me. "Sir, I've noticed an anomaly."

"So have I, Sifen. The shield, right?"

"Yes, sir. I have a theory."

"So do I. What's yours?" I thought I'd be polite.

"The Geyser of Fire may be low on power." Sifen's theory was exactly the same as mine. As impossibly powerful as Nevets' big lizard seemed to be, it must have some sort of limit, and it was reaching that limit. But still…

"Even if it totally fizzles out, it has its Plasma Armor. We can't break it." I replied.

"But if it has no power, it can be restrained. I suggest we keep attacking it until it can no longer move, then restrain it." It was a difficult plan, but it might work. Bless you, Sifen.

"That could take hours." I warned.

"To quote a private I once knew, 'Let's do it!'" Those lightning bolts sure knew when to hit.

I smiled. "Damn right."

Kavid was running rings around Nevets—Buster Cannons weren't exactly the fastest shooting guns. PAC-1 and PAC-3 ran in and joined the fray. Sifen's missiles shook the dragon up quite well, but my 150mm cannon did little harm.

"You morons! You're just as stupid as ever! You can't hurt me, you will just die like that idiot Captain Kelt did!"

Whoa. He didn't know I was there! He must have thought my Wolf was Mansod's. I was debating whether to reveal myself to him, when he got his second wind.

As Kavid soared around for another pass, the Geyser of Fire lurched out and bit his Redler by the neck, snapping its head off. The little dragon's head, the one that my friend, PAC-1 and I had worked so hard to re-attach, fell to the ground as the back-body tumbled in a ball of fire and smoke.

"Kavid! No!" Slamming PAC-1's accelerators to the max, I sprinted towards Kavid's potential drop point. Moments before the head was to strike, I leapt my Wolf through the air and opened its jaw. PAC-1 clamped onto the Redler head, getting its own head jerked left as it came down. The head still banged the ground, but nowhere near as hard as it would have alone.

"Impressive move, Jeremy." I looked up to see Katrana's PAC-1 staring at me from the flaming trees.

"Don't do this, Katrana. What I'm doing here is too important for any spite you have towards me." I turned back towards the Geyser, still carrying the Redler head in PAC-1's mouth. PAC-3 was desperately fighting Nevets, and in dire straits.

"How dare you turn your back on me?" snarled Katrana, "I could kill you with the flip of a switch, and you turn your back on me?"

"So this is about power?" I let that sink for a moment, "Why don't you stop wasting your time fantasizing about revenge on us, and maybe focus on what your father wanted. He wanted to use the Particle Charger to save the Republic. Well, here's your chance to use it to save the whole damn world! You're the only person on the planet that can stop Nevets! You can credit it all to your father if you want, but I'm telling you, Katrana, killing me will get your father absolutely nothing." With that, I ran off to help Sifen.

PAC-3 leapt over a Buster Cannon blast and shot off some feeble turret shots at the dragon, who was now in obvious control of the battle.

"I grow weary of this. This battle ends now!" growled Nevets. Unleashing a volley of missiles, he knocked back Sifen's Zoid 200-meters. The Geyser then turned its focus onto Kavid's fallen Redler. Crashing upon the broken dragon, the mighty dragon used its massive claws to rip through the body of its prey, until the Redler's Zoidcore was exposed. The core still weakly glowed with life—it hadn't died quite yet. Memories of Gellenos shivered through my spine. I almost felt…hungry…again. But Nevets did what I didn't get the chance to: the Geyser reached down and bit the core, tore it out of the Redler's body and raised it high into the air. Then, almost magically, the Geyser of Fire absorbed the energy from the Zoid core, sucking the last bits of life from a dying life-form. It was just like in the legend of the Blade Liger Vampire. This was how the Geyser gained all of its massive power—it sucked it from the hearts of its enemies.

"Now, you pathetic 'Castaways,' I once again have enough strength to fire the Plasma Particle Cannon. Your fate is sealed." I was shivering, but I knew it wasn't because of Nevets' laughter.

The red glow began to grow again in the dragon's mouth. I wasn't right next to Sifen, but I knew that I couldn't escape. After all this time, all these struggles to survive, to be beaten by that squeaky bean-pole Nevets. I…I couldn't find the strength anymore. Was I too scared, or was PAC-1 too frightened? Either way, the strength was gone.

The Geyser cocked its head back and opened its mouth.

The storm had weakened in the last couple of minutes, so when the bolt of lightning shot through the air, I was surprised. When it struck the Geyser of Fire, I was really surprised. When the dragon shattered into billions of particles, leaving Nevets in a sitting position up in the air, I was shocked.

But that bolt hadn't come from the sky, nor was it lightning. It was a wave, fired from the forest. Katrana had fired her Wave-Smacker. She hadn't betrayed us after all. I would thank her later. Right now, there was something else I had to do.

Major Nevets' body fell thirty meters to the ground and hit hard. There wasn't much chance he would survive, but I had to see him one more time.

More importantly, he had to see me.

I jumped out of PAC-1 and ran through the rain and across the muddy ground up to my arch-enemy. The mud must have softened his fall, because although his limbs were shattered, he still had some life left. His quivering, writhing-in-pain body lay soaked on the ground as I reached it. I rolled the major over and forced Major Nevets' eyes open so that I would be that last thing he would ever see.

"N…Nooooo…" With that, Major Erem Nevets, slaughterer of thousands, died on the broken slopes of Mt. Hoploy.

Kavid's eyes flickered open about six hours later.

"Where…where am I?" He asked.

I smiled from the foot of his bed.. "You're in the Intensive Care Unit of a Whale King, buddy.

He looked up at me, and almost started laughing. Almost. "So, this time I'm the one in the bed and you've been waiting for me to get up?"

I nodded. "Yup. Really boring job. How do you stand it?

"I think up poetry." That one caught me off-guard. Kavid sat up and looked at the floor. "So we got him? He's gone?"

"Yeah, we got him." I huffed. "Actually, Katrana got him. I lost."

Kavid looked confused, then shook his head. "So I suppose we have to thank her."

"If we ever find her. She disappeared right after the battle."

"Figures. Seems like we're always making friends with our enemies." That truth hurt so much I couldn't respond to it.

The room suddenly felt darker as Kavid turned and looked straight at me. "When we stood by the granary outside Klaylos, I agreed to help you because you promised I could go home when it was all over." Kavid's eyes teared up. "Can I go home now, Jeremy?"

Feeling the tears in my own eyes, I took his hand and shook it. "Let's go home, buddy."

With those words, the "Castaways of the Republic" ceased to exist, and Republic citizens Jeremy Kelt and Kavid Deen were reborn.


	10. Chapter 10

**Epilogue**

As I seamed a Godos' shoulder weld together, a voice call up to me. I powered down the torch and lifted my goggles. It didn't take long for me to smile.

"Colonel Sifen! Good to see you, old friend!" I called down from my perch on an elevated platform.

"Please, Jeremy, despite my gift of rank, I will never ask you to call me by that title." He humbly replied.

"You're just lucky the Republic was desperate for officers last year." I winked. Once the platform was lowered, I continued our conversation. "So what brings you to me and Kavid's repair shop?"

Before he could answer, another voice entered the shop. "Is that the big-time Republic Colonel Kellar Sifen in here?" Kavid walked out from his back office.

"Hello, Kavid."

"You better not be asking us to fight for you." Stated my stern-faced business partner. "I've got a girlfriend now."

Sifen held up a hand to calm him down. "Relax. I was just passing through New Helic City and thought I'd come say hello. I've heard of a pretty nice bar around here. Care to show it to me?"

"Put up the 'Closed' sign Kavid, we're headed to Bruno's 'Castaways Bar & Grill.'"

"Hot damn! It's 'Ladies Night!'"

"I thought you had a girlfriend." inquired Sifen.

"I do! She works there!"

The team was back together again, at least for one night, and it felt great. Kavid and I had stayed close, and Bruno wasn't far away, but Sifen was a veteran to the core, and chose to stay in the army.

The War of the Southern Frontier was pretty much cancelled by the actions of the Geyser of Fire. The massacre of Zoids scared off both the Republic and the Empire for decades to come. The Stone Dragon was never seen again, although the Blade Liger Vampire popped up from time-to-time, performing a random dark deed.

No one ever heard from Katrana Sared again, or even found her PAC-1. Sifen and I chose to keep our PAC-Wolves, but kept their Plasma Armor a secret. Kavid didn't buy another Zoid, although, ironically, he became a Zoid repairman. Bruno faired the best in my opinion. His bar became the biggest night club on the lower south side of New Helic City.

Our lives dropped to a level of refreshing simplicity, but as I've said before, life always works in circles. I knew that the simplicity could not last forever, but I would enjoy it for as long as it would last. Let's just say, keeping my life quiet isn't easy.

**THE END**


End file.
